Spirit level



April 8 1924. 1,489,572

F. o. BENNEwlTz SPIRIT LEVEL Filed March Il, 1922 Patented Apr. 8, 1924.

UNITED STATES.A

FRED O. BENNEWITOF 4LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

SPIRIT LEVEL.

Application led March 1, 1922. Serial Nie. 540,157.

To all lwhom it may concern.

Be it known that I, FRED O. BnNNnWrrz, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Spirit Levels, of which the following is a specification.

My invention Vrelates to improvements in spirit levels, the princi al objects of my in vention being to provide a relatively simple, practical and eificient device that is capable of being easily and quickly a plied to a straight edge bar, a straight ral the' blade of a T-square or other similar object, and which device carries a spirit level thus mak- .ing it possible to conveniently arrange the device on a straight edge bar or rail and the associated parts utilized for leveling pur-A poses in building operations.

It will be understood that the ordinary.

forms of spirit levels include bars or rails that are generally two or three feet in length and such forms of levels cannot always be conveniently carried and handled.

' I propose to provide a relatively small, compact device that may be 'conveniently carried in a tool box or in the pocket andA which device is constructed softhat it may be easily and quickly aplied to or removed from a straight edge ar or the like and which latter takes the place of the bar or rail that forms the body of the ordinary spirit level.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, my invention consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts that will be hereinafter more fully described and claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a perspective'view of a spirit level of my improved construction.

Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken approximately on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1;.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken approximately on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view of a modified form of the spirit level.

Referring by numerals to the accompanying drawings which illustrate a practical embodiment of my invention, 10 designates a substantially rectangular plate of suitable. material such as metal, wood or hard rubber, and formed in one of the side faces-of said plate is a longitudinally disposed channel 11.w

rang'ed therein is a bow s ring 13 having one end secured in any suita le manner to plate 10 and the opposite end of said spring being free to move lengthwise of the recess 12.

Secured to and projecting upwardly from the central portion of the top of plate 10 1s a neck member 14 that serves as a support for a longitudinally disposed housing 15, the central portion-of which is cut away to form an opening 16 and seated in said housing is a tube 17 of glass' containin a body of suitable liquid and an air bubb e 18.

Secured in any suitable manner to the upper portion of plate 10 and overlying the channel 11 is a plate 19 that may have the same length and width as plate 10. When the device is detached from a straight edge or rail the central ortion of spring 13 bears agamst theinner ace of plate 19 and when the device .is positioned upon the straight edge the 'spring is forced into the groove or recess 12 as shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, thereby creating sufiicient, tension to firmly retain the leveling attachment in position upon the straight edge or rail. f

Thus the device which is very compact and capable of being carried in the pocket or in a small tool box may be conveniently arranged on a straight edge or bar and utilized for leveling purposes in any building operation.

In the modified construction illustrated in Fig. 4' the end portions of the plate formin l the main body of the device are extended upward as designated by 20 and the bubble containing glass tube has its ends seated in these upward extensions. Secured to the tops of the extensions 20 `and overlyin the exposed portion of the bubble containing tube is a plate 21, preferably ofmetal.

Thus it will be seen that I have provided a simple, practical and convenient spirit level attachment that may be readily applied to or removed from a body such as a straight edge rail or the like.

It will be understood that minor changes in the size, form and construction of the various parts v.of my spirit level may be made and substituted for those herein shown and described without departing from the spirit of my invention, the scope. of which is set forth in the appended claims I claim as my invention:

1. A spirit level comprisin a plate having a recess formed in one ace, a second plate removably secured to, but spaced from,

and a the first mentioned plate and. overlying said recess, a.- sprin secured tothe first mentioned late an arranged within said recess, ubble containing tube arranged on 5 and carried by the first mentioned plate.

p 2. In a 4spirit level, an L-shaped plate vheving a longitudinally-disposed recess formed in one leg, a spring secured to seid plate undarrenged within said recess, a second plate removably secured to the other leg of 10 said plate and overlying the .recess to form a channel therebetween and a bubble containing tube carried bythe first mentioned l late.

In testimony whereof I have sign my name to this specication. v

FRED lO. BENNEWITZ. 

